Refrigerator.



W. W. DOUGLASS.

REFRIGERATOR.

APPLICATION FILED oc. 2o. :911.

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UNITED STATES PATENT QFFICE.

WILLIAM WOODROW DOUGLASS, OF MIAMI, FLORIDA.

REFRIGERATOR.

'Application filed October 20, 1917.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, WILLIAM W. DOUG- LAss, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of Miami, in the county of Dade and State ofFlorida, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inRefrigerators; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and eXact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

This invention relates to improvements in refrigerators of theevaporative type,- the object of the invention being to pro vide arefrigerator of the type specified in which adequate provision shall beprovided for supplying water to the fabric walls thereof and maintainingthe latter well saturated throughout their full extent and to soconstruct the refrigerator that it shall be ant proof.

'Tith this and other objects in view the invention consists in certainnovel features of construction and combinations of parts as hereinafterset forth and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a front elevation of arefrigerator embodying my improvements. Fig. 2 is an end view. Fig. 3 isa view in section, and Figs. 4, 4t1 and 5 are detail views.

1 represents the bottom of the refrigerator which be mounted on suitablelegs 2 and supports the superstructure of the refrigerator. Thissuperstructure comprises a plurality7 of posts 3 to which the frameworkis secured and a suitable frame 4 is provided for the accommodation of adoor 6. A top 7 is secured to the posts 3 and to said framework andsupports a tank 8 for water. All of the joints between the wooden partsof the structure are made sufficiently tight to render them ant proof.This may be accomplished by mashing the wood of one member of each jointso as to form a groove andthen removing the wood from each side of suchgroove. Then when the two members forming a joint are brought togetherand subjected to moisture during the ordinary use of the refrigerator,that portion of the wood which has been mashed will expand and presstightly against the adjacent member of the joint and form a water tightand ant proof connection.

All of the walls of the structure including the panel or panels of thedoor consist Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 17, 1918.

Serial No. 197,636.

of fabric material such as canvas or duck as indicated at 9. The upperand lower edges of these canvas walls are securely held in the joints ofthe framework, which latter are calked by the protruding or swelledportions of the wood as above described and as illustrated at 10.

In the drawing, Fig. 1, I have shown a single door in the front of therefrigerator and to the canvas walls plurality of pockets or troughs 12composed of the same material as that of which said walls are composedare secured at their lower edges and each of said pockets or troughsextends from one sider of the door around the refrigerator to the otherside of the door and the canvas panel of the door is provided withsimilar pockets 13. The pockets flare outwardly from their lower edgesand it may be desirable to provide means for supporting said pockets attheir upper edges. For this purpose hooks 14 of non-corrodible metal maybe provided.

The walls of the tank 8 are provided close to their bottom edges withoutlets 15 with which a plurality of pipes preferably of the ieXibletype) 16 communicate. Some of these pipes or tubes may be disposed todischarge into the upper pocket or trough while others of said pipes ortubes are arranged to discharge against the canvas walls intermediate ofthe pockets or troughs thereon. At the bottom of the refrigerator atrough 17 is provided to receive water flowing from the canvas walls andin order to prevent water from getting inside of the refrigerator at thebottom thereof, I provide a trough 18 which may be made of water proofmaterial and locate said trough inside of the refrigerator and in suchposition that it will act as a deflector and thereby insure the passageof water to the trough 17T The trough 17 has a tonguesand-groovcconnection with the bottom of the refrigerator as indicated at 19 andsuch connection is provided with the calking means hereinbeforedescribed. I prefer to make the trough or gutter 17 at the bottom of therefrigerator of wood and a suitable overiiow 17zt is provided for thistrough or gutter so as to maintain a quantity of water in the latter atall times to prevent ants from entering the refrigerator, the latterbeing thus made ant-proof.

To control the discharge of water from the tank 8 through the outlets 15and pipes 16 to the canvas walls and pockets, I provide a plurality ofvalves 20 which may conveniently consist of levers pivotally supportedbetween their ends by the walls of the trough 8.

rlhe refrigerator will be provided with suitable shelves 21 and thesemay be conveniently supported by means of suitable brackets 22.

Water supplied from the pipes 16 and discharged either into the pocketsor troughs 12 or against the canvas walls will be absorbed by the latterand theI excess will become deposited in the next lower pocket or troughthrough which it will pass and b-y which such water will be fed to thecanvas wall, thus keeping the full extent of the canvas composing thewalls of the refrigerator thoroughly saturated with water so that airpassing through said walls will become saturated with moisture `and theevaporation thereof will effect reduction of temperature within therefrigerator, as is well understood. Should kany considerable amount ofwater accumulate in the pockets or troughs l2, this water will beequally distributed by reason of the fact that said pockets or troughsextend around the refrigerator from one side of the door opening to theother.

Slight changes might be made in the details of the structure and hence Ido not wish to restrict myself to the precise details shown.

Having fully described my invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters-Patent, is:

l. In a refrigerator, the combination with an open framework andabsorbent walls, of pockets or troughs of absorbent material proan openframework and absorbent walls ser cured thereto, of means fordischarging water against the absorbent walls, an external gutter at thebottom of the refrigerator to receive surplus water from said walls, and

a deflector of water proof material locatedy within the refrigerator atthe lower ends of the absorbent walls and adapted to direct waterthrough the latter to said external gutter.

4. In a refrigerator, .the combination with an open framework andabsorbent material secured 'to said framework and .composing the wallsof the refrigerator, of a plurality of superimposed pockets or ytroughsof absorbent material secured to saidl absorbent walls, and means forsupplying water to said absorbent walls. Y

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM WODROW DOUGLASS. Witnesses:

Josiirri NEVIN, A. H. ADAMS.

l Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. C.

